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Miami Dolphins release LB Matt Roth

A groin injury or something else limited him to play in four 2009 games. From the Miami Herald-

A strange, four-month span for Dolphins linebacker Matt Roth came to an unexpected conclusion Tuesday — the team has decided to move forward without him.Matt Roth

Roth, who became the center of an odd saga when he missed all of training camp with a groin injury, was released after totaling just four combined tackles during his four games this season.

The move was “strictly a football decision,” one source said. Although no other outside factors are believed to have contributed to his departure, the drama of training camp surely will follow Roth in the wake of Miami’s choice to cut him.

It’s a saga that has remained mostly unexplained. When Roth arrived for training camp this year, he blamed a failed conditioning test on being ill — only to later come forward with an admission about a groin injury.

After trainers struggled to diagnose the issue, Roth was sent to Philadelphia to meet with a leading groin specialist, Dr. William Meyers. The evaluation did not reveal any significant issues, and Roth returned with what seemed to be an optimistic report.

But according to multiple sources at the time, Roth continued to sit out of practice. with no further explanation other than to say his groin was still sore. The strange situation caused the team to go forward without him, moving Jason Taylor into the strong-side linebacker role where Roth served as a starter throughout 2008.

Roth, who was a defensive end in college, never seemed to be even an adequate NFL linebacker. He was big but not fast enough for the position. This should have been obvious to Nick Saban when he took Roth in the 2nd round of the 2005 NFL draft, but like so many other selections Miami made then, players(Anyone remember Eddie Moore? Jamar Fletcher?) were selected that would need to be over acheive in the NFL if the Dolphins were to reap any benefits from them.

Roth is a certified draft bust. So is the Dolphins first round selection of 2006 who has never been able to crack the Dolphins starting secondary except when it was decimated by injuries in 2007. Allen only plays special teams at present. As soon as his contract expires, I expect Miami to show Allen the door just like they did with Roth.

 
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